Koichi Wakata

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Koichi Wakata
Koichi Wakata
Astronaut
 Nationality Japanese
 Born August 1, 1963
Omiya, Saitama
 Occupation1 Pilot
 Space time 21d 19h 44m
 Selection 1992 NASA Group
 Mission(s) STS-72, STS-92
Mission insignia
 1 previous or current

Koichi Wakata (若田 光一 Wakata Kōichi, born 1 August 1963) is a Japanese astronaut from JAXA and a veteran of two NASA space shuttle missions.

Wakata, born in Omiya, Saitama, earned a masters degree in applied mathematics from Kyushu University in 1989. He worked as a structural engineer for Japan Airlines. Wakata was selected as an astronaut candidate in 1992 and trained at NASA's Johnson Space Center; he flew aboard STS-72 in 1996 and STS-92 as a mission specialist.

His next flight will be on STS-124. He is planned to become the first Japanese ISS expedition crew member and the first JAXA astronaut to fly on Soyuz.

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